Per request, the failures of Brown&Esensten

[soapfan770]

Per EricMontrel22's request, this article discusses the firings of Barbara Esensten and Jaames Harmon Brown from GL. The writing duo would cause further wreckage on various soaps in the '00s, including Days in the spring of '07. Their time on GL was one of those coffin nails with cloning, nursery rhymes, San Cristobal, and the introduction of the Santoses. Their first year(Feb '97-Feb '98) was pure enjoyment and fantastic soap with much acclaim, but it went downhill fast after that.

[Khan]

For years, I tried to think of a way the Clone saga could have been salvaged. Eventually, though, I gave up. It couldn't be salvaged. The idea was pure hokum from the start.

Thanks for the article!

[YRBB]

They were Headwriters for the final season of DYNASTY? Um, no.

[DRW50]

I didn't mind the clone story. It was stupid, but ultimately harmless. Kim Zimmer turned in some strong performances in the last weeks of the story.

I think the Holly kidnapping story was awful and a mistake, although Holly probably would have been marginalized even without that story.

B&E generally suck but I did generally find GL to be watchable, and more often than not entertaining, during their run. They were the only team who knew how to write for WM's Dinah, and while the stories did become eyesores later on, early San Cristobel and Santos didn't bother me. They also wrote a lot for Drew, and I loved Drew.

I could see how stupid the stories were but I did enjoy many day-to-day episodes. After they left, and the Labines and later Lucky Gold and others took over I didn't enjoy the show very much -- the plastic had been taken off, so to speak.

The thing I really hated from that era was the cruel writing for Vanessa, which basically painted her as an enabling, weak mother and an ugly old hag who could never compare to the beauty of Beth Raines. Of course, Rauch hated Maeve Kinkead.

[MichaelGL]

Psh looking at back at the show's final years, B&E weren't that bad. The clone story while, the definition of ridiculous, did at times have some emotional points that made for a good soap. However I just wished these two were a bit reigned in during their tenure, like Carl said what they did to Vanessa was unforgivable, as what little they did with Roger. I think it was a major mistake to kill off Jenna and making San Cristobel a permanent fixture on GL was blasphemy.

[DRW50]

Roger was nothing without Michael Zaslow.

I blame Rauch for what happened with Jenna, or someone at P&G. Didn't they get upset with Fiona because she criticized them how they treated Zas, and also because she complained in print about her lack of storyline?

They just seemed...mediocre, stupid, a bit like junk food. I did have my complaints -- beyond Vanessa, there was the Harley/Phillip/Beth triangle (I hated Phillip for most of that time and that story was the first where Harley started losing her personality), I didn't like Susan, I think that some of their stories for Blake were trashy (although at least she was written for), I was disappointed that more wasn't done with the black characters (although that was probably Rauch too), but I liked more than I didn't, at least for most of their run. But that was probably one of the last times I actually enjoyed more of a daily GL episode than I didn't.

They or Rauch were also responsible for the only role I have ever liked Hunt Block in.

[Vee]

Rauch had intended the Ben Warren role for his old star James DePaiva, who claims he regrets not leaving OLTL to take it.

This entire era felt so trashy, cheap, crass and juvenile to me. That's what Rauch and his various writing teams did to GL and it never really went away.

[DRW50]

He's probably right to regret not taking the part; I think he would have been good as Ben.

You're right about their era of GL. I think the reason I enjoyed it is because for me GL had been hard to watch starting around 1994, and although I had some initial hope with Laibson/McTavish, the show was a living hell by summer 1996. So to even be able to watch the show at that point was an improvement for me. And sadly that is about where GL stayed for the rest of its life, a show which I would usually only be able to enjoy parts of if I could watch at all.

[NYC123]

B&E just suck. They should NEVER write for Daytime agian. They may have had 1-3 good years but after that nothing.

[Leia]

Rauch was in what role during this time?

[DRW50]

Executive Producer, late 1996-late 2002. He certainly left his mark. Years later I still want to know exactly what he did to sabotage the Labines, because I remember how as soon as they arrived, it seemed like any actor who was let go would go to the press and blast them and make sure the finger was pointed at Claire and Matthew.

[Vee]

I wish I'd gotten to see more of the Labines' work at the show; however, some of the stories they did (like Reva, immigration crusader) were unfortunate, and the planned Holly/Olivia thing Labine alluded to sounded a lot like something antiquated straight out of The Children's Hour.

[DRW50]

I didn't really care for most of their work. The story I hated most was Danny back in the mob and the whole Mary/May cigarette girl. And the San Cristobel stuff, Beth as princess...if I watched again I might enjoy it more, it was just at the time.

The best thing they did was turn Olivia around into being a much more viable character. And they gave Meta a lot of airtime. Otherwise everything felt very forced and also like filler. The immigration story, Susan being busted for downloading music, et al. I think at this time Blake became a notary republic or minister or something.

[Leia]

I hated all of that. I didn't realize Rauch was at GL. I liked B&E's work.

[DRW50]

All the black people disappearing was the first tipoff.